Erian El'ranelen is the only son of Sevren El'ranelen, a cartographer of no small reputation due to his extensive work mapping out the hidden places of the Inner Sea. Sevren explored the length and breadth of Avistan and Garund for decades (with more time to do so than his human companions, thanks to the elven blood flowing through his veins), from climbing the heights of the Crown of the World to sailing the Obari Ocean. Roughly two decades past, Erian came into the explorer's life. None knew of the boy's mother, though considering the child's obvious human traits it was easily speculated she was likewise human, and Sevren never spoke of her. The boy immediately became inseparable from the man in all his journeys. While many might say putting a child into such a life was cruel, Erian would vociferously disagree. His classroom was the world, his teachers the places and people met during his father's work.
Erian grew up learning the ways of the cartographer from his father--carefully studying the lay of the land, crafting maps of both beauty and function, and learning how the terrain itself gave hints as to what lay over the horizon. However, his time was not spent just in surveys and drawing. Erian loved to watch his father's guard in their drills, and on coming of age enough to lift a sword he began training with them as well. He also spent time with the huntsman, tracking prey for the night's meal, learning the way of the bow and how to move without being seen or heard. However, in all this his father always cautioned, "Not all creatures of a race should be judged based on the actions of their kin. If this were not true, the elves would surely have wiped humans from Golarion long before Aroden ever walked this land..."
On Erian's 15th year, Sevren determined to send his soon to Absalom for a "proper" education. Erian took to his studies in the classroom as readily as he did exploring, though it was no secret that no matter how great the building he preferred the open lands to being inside. He learned the basics, of things mundane, arcane, and divine, but never took to anything so much as he did his studies in history and the development of nations. While he could not hone his skills through experiential learning, Erian availed himself of every book on history, geography, and commerce to be found in the great libraries of the city. On nearing the beginning of his 6th year of study, news came of his father's latest exploration--Sevren was commissioned to travel into the tangled jungles of the Mwangi Expanse and learn its dark secrets in order to finally produce a proper map of the region. Erian longed to go with his father, but Sevren argued that it was time for the boy to become a man, to finish his studies and begin his own explorations. And so Erian stayed as his father left for the south, leaving behind his heirloom bow and elven armor. Sevren left these gifts with the following words, "Use these only when you must, favoring tongue and pen over blood and pain."
Now Erian finds himself answering the call for those brave (or foolhardy) enough to risk the dangers of the River Kingdoms. He plans to make his dad proud...
